Filter.



PATENTED NOV. 3, 1903.

A. E. SUMMER. FILTER.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 19, 1902. N0 MODEL. I 2 SHEBTSSHEET l.

llllllllllllllllllllllll a 0' PATENTED NOV.-3-, 1993.

A E. GUMMER.

FILTER.

APBLILUJATIIION FILED nov. 19. 1902.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

' luvamm? TN: ucmus PETERS co, rnoroumou WA$H|NGTOIL o aside elevation of the machine.

Patented November 3, 1303.

PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT E. OUMMER, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

FILTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 742,971, dated November 3, 1903.

Application filed November 19, 1902. Serial No. 131,954. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT E. OUMMER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in'Filters; and I do declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to a continuous-power filter; and the invention consists in the construction and combination of parts and in the method of doing the work, substantially as shown and described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figured is Fig. 2 is an end elevation thereof looking in at the left of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the machine on line w m, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional elevation of the machine shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is an enlarged crosssection of a portion of the cylinder and associated parts on a line corresponding to a: 0:, Fig. 1, and corresponding also to the view shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 6 shows a modification of the mechanism in Fig. 4, and in which there is a converging extremity or end of the main cylinder and conveyor-blades therein working upon the inner surface of said extension instead of being set apart therefrom, as in Fig. 4.

This machine is designed to be used to separate the liquid from the solids in distiller-s" slops, the waste from glucose-works, and in like places where a liquid refuse carries more or less solid matter in suspension.

In the manufacture of glucose, starch, spirits, and the like the slops contain quantities of flaky and other heavy matter from the grain that has been used in the process and which it is desirable to recover chiefly as a food product for cattle, and it is for such purposes more especially that this machine is designed, though of course it may be used for any other purpose for which it may be found useful.

In the machine as shown, A represents an outer casing or cylinder, usually of cast metal and having a series of lengthwise slots a numerously and uniformly disposed around the same from end to end, so as to afiord free outlets for liquid that is thrown oil by the op eration of the press, and the said casing may be built of one or more sections.- Suitable supports B are provided on the casing, and it has ahead A at the left, which is bolted upon the end of said casing and serves as a support for certain other parts, as will be seen.

Thus the operating or power shaft 0, the'inlet feed or supply tube D, which communicates with an opening through head A with the inside of said casing, and a series of several small tubes d, connected with a cleaning device E, pass through head A and are packed therein to avoid leakage. An outer bearing or support 0' is provided for shaft 0 independent of casing A and outside its head A. Insidesaid casing I provide a numerously and uniformly perforated sheet-metal lining F of suitable thickness and quality and which extends from end to end thereof and which may directly overlie the slots a lengthwise in said casing and provide the only obstruction to the outflow of the liquid, or I can interpose a sheet-metal or wire mesh g either under lining F, as in Fig. 5, or over the same, as may be found best, the idea in any case being to intercept the solid matter in the material and produce only a flow of clear liquid. Henceany liquid flowing through the walls of the casing or cylinder must pass through the said mesh or screen and the said perforated lining, and the plan of the invention is to have the filtering so perfectly done that all particles of solid matter whatsoever will be intercepted and retained within the press and carried forward to be discharged with such matter at the outer end of the press, where it can be separately taken care of. The plan of the invention further contemplates a continuous flow of liquid through the supply tube or pipe D into the press under more or less mechanical pressure, and having reached the press and with the shaft 0 in constant and sufficiently-rapid. rotation the material is carried forward and the work of separation goes on by means of a series of blades 2 upon shaft 0 and a continuous spiral conveyor G, sleeved over said shaft at the discharge end of the press, but adapted to be separately rotated on saidshaft through its own drivewheel H. The blades 2 are radially disposed upon shaft 0 at intervals about the same and are set apart from each other in such relation that they will cooperate in forcing the material forward in the press, while they are also apart from the wall of the cylinder to afford travelingroomforcleansingdeviceE. These blades are, furthermore, so attached to the shaft that they may be set at more or less inclination to the axis thereof and the direction of travel, as may be found necessary to carry the material forward more or less rapidly, according to the nature of the material and the character of work to be done. From the said blades the material is brought into the reach of spiral conveyer G. This part is so constructed that the con volutions or blades thereof come near together toward its outer end in order to make the forward pressure greater as the said end is approached and where, presumably, the heavier or more solid material which has been retained in the cylinder accumulates and has to be forced along with considerable power through whatever discharge-channel is provided for that purpose.

In Fig. 4 I show a yielding head h, controlled by a spring h bearing against the same, and a rotatable nut 72. behind the spring, adapted to crowd the spring more or less against said head, and thereby increase the resistanceof the head from theoutside against the conveyer G as may be deemed best. The solid material is then crowded out about the edge of this head and is carried away by any suitable or available means.

In the modification, Fig. 6, the outer extremity of easing A is slightly converged all around and has a converging closely-fitting conveyer G on shaft 0, with the edge of the conveyer running against the wall of the lining F, and there is provided a counterweighted drop-door 12, supported upon arm 13, having adjustable weights 14:. The conveyer must work against this counterweight to force the solid material out through the opening past door 12. These or any equivalent outlets may be provided.

The drive-wh'eel H for shaft 0 is splined thereon, while conveyer G and its drive-wheel H are sleeved upon said shaft and rotate independently, and power is shown as being applied to these parts through shaft K, carrying pinions 7c and lo, meshing, respectively, with gear-wheels H and H.

Much difficulty has been experienced in keeping the liquid-outlets open,so as-to perfectly do their work, and this difficulty has been especially serious'because of the gummy material handled and which in a comparatively short time deposits itself in the small outlet-passages so persistently that filtration is practically prevented. To overcome this difficulty and to keep said outlets open, I provide a traveling annular cleansing medium E, having the double function of a scraper, with a blade 5 at each side or edge adapted to run in close touch with the surface of the screen and throw the deposits up in the path of the blades on 2, while the said device has an annular chamber 6 formed about the outside next to the wall of the cylinder and communicated with by one or more tubes or pipes at from the outside. These pipes may be connected up with a blower or with a steam, hot-water, or other source of supply under pressure to cleanse the meshes and filtering-orifices of the wall of the cylinder. Any suitable means may be provided for engaging the said cleansing device or ring E and causing it to travel back and forth the full length of the cylinder, and the speed of such travel may be according to the needs of the work being done. Naturally this will differ according to the character of the material beinghandled. This travel is controlled by tubes d, fixed to said ring E, and the tubes themselves are caused to travel back and forth lengthwise by means of shaft L, carrying cross-head N, threaded thereon and havingits arms supporting tubes d. The shaft L is supported in post Z, as here shown, and maybe rotated by any available power mechanism at any desired speed. This or any other way of causing tubes d to travel may be adopted. The space remaining between the ends of blades 2 and conveyer G not only affords room for the to-and-fro travel of the cleansing device, but also permits a deposit of the solids about theinner surface of the cylinder, which is thus expressly provided for and really constitutes a part of my invention. Obviously it is the glutinous matter more than anything else which clogs up the relatively small interstices of the filtering-wall of the cylinder, and the more completely such matter is kept from the said wall the freer will be the work of the machine. I find also that there is a heavy substance present in the slops, such as the bran from the grain, which makesa porous or granular deposit and itself becomes a most excellent filtering media up to a certain point and which also serves largely to keep the pasty matter from coming in contact with the filtering-meshes of the machine and to this extent keeps them clean. Altogether, therefore, the bran and like deposits upon the walls of the cylinder come within the scope of my invention and are of the most practical use in effecting perfect filtration, as is obvious. The construction of the machine with an open space next about the wall of the cylinder and which is not disturbed by the conveyer-blades therefore constitutes an important feature in my invention. Obviously, also, as such bran deposits are disturbed by cleaner E they readily re-form under new and helpful conditions, and thus thebran is made to do a part of the work which it is believed can be done more effectually in this way than by reliance on the filteringmeshes of the machine alone.

The method or process of filtering liquids embodied in this application is divided out and made the subject-matter of an application therefor, filed October, 1903, Serial No. 177,093.

What I claim is a 1. The means herein described for filtering distillers slops and other like materials, the same comprising a filtering area, means to bring the material to said area under pressure and a conveyer for the material across said area so arranged in relation thereto as to leave a deposit of the material thereon to serve as a filtering medium, substantially as described.

2. In filtering apparatus, afiltering-wall of cylindrical form internally and having an inlet at one end and an outlet at the other end, and conveying means to force the body or material forward from inlet to outlet and spaced apart from said wall, whereby a deposit of the material is left about said wall to serve as a filtering medium, substantially as described.

3. A cylinder having a filtering-wall, in combination with blades in the cylinder constructed to carry the material forward in said cylinder and to leave a space between their outer edges and the said wall, whereby room is afforded for deposits on said wall, substantially as described.

4. The cylinder having a filteringwall and an inlet at one end and an outlet at the other end in combination with a-conveying mechanism in said cylinder out of contact with said wall and a wall-cleaning device adapted to travel between said conveying mechanism and said wall, substantially as described.

5. A cylinder having an open-work wall and a filter-mesh over said wall, an inlet and an outlet at its respective ends, in combination with means to feed the material thereto and means to convey the material under pressure forward in said cylinder, and a surface-cleansing device in said cylinder arranged to operate over the inner surface thereof, substantially as described.

6. The cylinder and the annular cleaning device on the surface thereof, said device having a scraping edge to run over said surface and lift deposits therefrom, and means to actuate said device, substantially as described.

7. The cylinder and the traveling cleaning device therein having a scraping-blade at each edge and oppositely projected so as to clean the surface of the cylinder in both directions of travel, substantially as described.

8. A screening-cylinder and an annular cleaning device therein, said device having a space about its periphery in open relation to the surface of said cylinder and a tube leading to the said open space, whereby a cleansing medium may be utilized through said tube and space to clear the interstices of the cylinder, substantially as described.

9. The screeningcylinder and the ring within the same having scraping edges and a space about its periphery exposed to the surface of the cylinder and tubes communicating with said open space and extending without the cylinder, substantially as described.

10. The screening-cylinder open at each end for the passage of material, in combina-' tion with a shaft in said cylinder and blades fixed thereon and an independent conveyer on said shaft, substantially as described."

11. The cylinder having an inlet at one end and a graduated outlet at the other end, in combination with ashaft and a series of adjustable blades thereon, and a conveyer at the outlet end of the cylinder free to rotate on said shaft, substantially as described.

12. The cylinder having an open-work body and a shaft therein, in combination with a series of independently-adjustable blades on said shaft, substantially as described.

13. The cylinder constructed to filter a fluid material and having an inlet at one end and an outlet at the other end, means under resistance set into said outlet and means in the cylinder to force the material through the said outlet against said resistance, snbstan- ALBERT E. CUMMER.

Witnesses:

R. B. MOSER, H. T. FISHER. 

